wheeledhorseman 575 #26 Posted February 15, 2012 Likewise Chuck, AC theory is not a strong point with me either but I recall from the early seventies that there was a whole school of thought that using pulse transformers to trigger SCRs and Triacs was the better method full stop (can't remember why though) so I guess it briefly crept into the RR design. I never got round to satisfying my curiosity re adding a full wave bridge, partly because the RR does what it has to 'as is' but also because the principal limiting factor with the output of any alternator is going to be the reactance of the coils. It's a boon in one way in that, unlike regulating a dynamo, there's no need to include current limiting in the regulator design but it does mean that there will always be a limit to what can be achieved in terms of output. Re conformal coating, I'll probably be shot down in flames here but the lites board in my 227-5 has been without now for 6 months waiting for me to fix it. When I get round to putting a new chip in I'm thinking in terms of using several coats of spray lacquer designed for pcbs. I love these threads. Andy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
meadowfield 2,619 #27 Posted February 15, 2012 re: conformal coating.... it will either be lacquer or nothing! I've many circuits that are working fine after years of just general environmental exposure. They don't see water, but may get a bit of damp. Providing the boards are generally clean, free from flux and contamination there is usually a bigger chance of terminal corrosion by galvanic reaction than any other fault! All my horses suffer from it in the same areas, copper/steel is a terrible combination and the ignition terminals or switch terminals in the Pto/seat switches seem to suffer most. It just destroys them and they fall apart.... So no Andy, I agree with you... :D Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wheeledhorseman 575 #28 Posted February 15, 2012 The things I end up doing in the cause of WH science Took the RR off and here's the detail of the component side of the board. The transistor on the board is a replacement I happened to have in my box of bits i.e. not original. The SCR was working fine till I blew it trying to figure out how the thing worked hence the replacement. The rest is original. - Hope this helps. Andy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
meadowfield 2,619 #29 Posted February 16, 2012 perfect Andy, I can now do a fairly exact clone of that variant ! mark Share this post Link to post Share on other sites